Price-exhibiting device



P. w. FENTON PRI'cE EXHIBITI'NG DEVICE Filed April 8, 1926 INVENTORPAUL. 1 14 /-'/V7'O/V J Q ATTORN EY 1 Patented June 29, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PAUL W. FENTON, OF NEVT YORK, N. Y. i r

. PRICE-EXHIBITING DEVICE.

Application filed April 8, 1926. Serial No. 100,488.

The invention relates to changeable signs designed, for example, asprice indicating means, such as may be utilized in exhibiting the priceof gasoline at a filling station.

It has for its object to provide a substantial though cheaplymanufactured deviceof this character which shall be compact and affordample variation in the particular in dicia employed, for example, overthe prevailing range of prices. A further object of the inventionconsists in providing means whereby a particular indicator member mayquickly and readily be selected or changed.

nection with the accompanyingdrawings,

in which Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the improved exhibiting devicewith placards or price exhibiting plates folded within an enclosingcasing or housing member. 7

Fig. 2 is an end view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of said, device shown suspended from asuitable bracket, and the plates orplacards hanging down therefrom inposition for exhibition.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary transverse verti-. cal section taken on the line4-4, Fig. 3, and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to the drawings, 10 designates a sheet metal housing member orcasing open along an edge as, for example, an inverted U-shaped member;and to theback of which suitableeyes 11 or like members may be at tachedfor suspending the housing, as from a suitable support or bracket 12,Fig. 2. Pivoted substantially midway of the ends of the housing and t0the walls thereof near their edges, as at the pins or rivets 13 and 14,are two sets of plates or placards 15 and 16 which bear upon theiropposite faces the figures or other indicating marks it is de sired todisplay. For example, the respective plates may bear consecutive numbersso that by selecting the proper plate from each set and permitting thesame to depend as shown in Fig. 3.

fromthe housing, as hereinafter set forth, the desired price may bedisplayed.

To this. end, the plates which. are thus pivotally. mounted in thehousing maybe swung out or caused to drop under the in 1 fluence ofgravity, for example, downwardly about their respectivepins 13 and 14and assume a substantially vertical position as indicated in Fig. 3.-Normally, this is prevented by a strap 17 for the set 15 and a strap 18for the set16 of the plates. These U-shaped and are pivotally straps aremounted over the respective ends of the housing as by being pivotedabout pins or rivets l9 and 20 respectively and secured to the saidhousing nearthe ends and back thereof. The said straps are designed toswing outwardly, as indicated in-the dotted line position, Fig. 3, torelease the respective sets of plates normally held thereby, and thusenable the desired selection to be made. Thereupon, those remaining andnot desired are returned within the housing by forcing the same upwardlyand are then retained and concealed therein by swinging the straps backinto position over the ends of the housing andlower open portion. Bythis. ex-

pedient, the plates not in use are thus normally concealed and protectedwith the housing, while two-or four juxtaposed plates may depend frombetween the walls of the housing and display the desired information Itwill be understood, of course, that other information or legends may bedisplayed in. connection therewith upon the outer faces of the housing,as in.- dicated, being embossed thereon, out therein or otherwiseapplied thereto. To afford the sameprice indication from both sides,plates may be numbered from O to 9 on one side, forming the right handdigit {and v numbered 1, 2 or 3 etc, on other side, forming the lefthandv digit, thereby obtaining the range desired. This will necessitatefour plates being swung into exhibiting position and render pricesvisible from two sides.

In order to maintain the exhibiting plates 13 and 14: along the loweredges of the walls of the housing and substantially midway of the endsthereof. These arms are adapted, when the device is not in use, to beswung upwardly to embrace the lower edges of the housing, as indicatedin Fig. 1, but do not extend sufficiently outwardly toward the endsthereof to interfere with the operation of the straps. When the deviceis in use, the said guide arms are designed to depend from the loweredges as shown in Fig. 3, in juxtaposedrelation-tabs back of the onebe,- ing-adjacent the back of the other with 7 their respective edgesfitting over' the corresponding side edges of the depending plates. Theextent of movement of the sald arms, moreover, lSllD'llllBCl to thesubstantially vertical position indicated by cutting away the topsthereof an amount sufficient only to allow of this movement the armsthen striking against the lower edges of the housing which act as a stoptherefor, (see Fig. 4 of thedrawings).

I claim V p 7 1. A price exhibitor, comprising a housing open alonganedge, marked plates pivotally secured within the housing and adapted toswing therefrom into an exhibiting position, and a strap memberpivotally secured to the housing and adapted toembrace the open edge ofthe housing to hold concealed therein the remainder of the plates notdesired for exhibition;

2. A price exhibitor, comprising a housing open along an edge, markedplates pivotally secured within the housing and adapted to swingtherefrom into an ex hibiting position, means to limit the extent ofoutward swing of the plates, and means pivotally secured to the housingto hold concealed therein the remainder of plates not desired forexhibition.

3. A price exhibitor, comprising a housing of an inverted U-shapedmember, marked plates pivotally secured within the housing along thebottom edges of said U-shaped member and individually adapted to dependtherefrom, and means pivotally secured to the housing to hold concealedtherein the remaining plates.

4:. A price exhibit-0r, comprising a housing of an inverted U-shapedmember, two sets of marked plates pivotally secured within the housingalong the bottom edges of the U.-shaped member substantially midway ofits ends and adapted to swing downwardly therefrom, and a pair of strapspivotally secured to the top of the housing at its ends and adapted toswing over the lower edges of the housing to hold concealed therein theremaining plates of the respective sets of plates.

5. A price exhibitor, comprising a housing of an inverted U-shapedmember, two sets of marked plates pivotally secured within the housingalong the bottom edges of the U-shaped member substantially midway ofits ends and adapted toswing downwardly therefrom, a pair of strapspivotally secured to the top of the housing at its ends and adapted toswing over the lower edges;

of'the housing to hold concealed therein the remalning plates of therespective sets of plates, and means to prevent a dependlng plate fromswinging beyond the vertical.

6.-A price exhibitor,comprising a housing of an inverted U-shapedmember, two sets of marked plates pivota'lly secured within the housingalong the bottom edges of the U-shaped member substantially midway ofits ends and adapted to swing downwardly therefrom, a pair of strapspivotally secured to the top of the housing to hold concealed thereinthe remaining plates of the respective sets of plates, and channelshapedarms pivoted to the lower edges of the housing to depend therefrom andem brace the respective edges of two juxtaposed the housing'to dependtherefrom and embrace the respective edges of the two juxtaposeddepending plates, the bottom of the channel-shaped arms being cut awayat the inner end sufficiently only to limit movement of the arms to asubstantially vertical position, whereupon said bottom contacts with thelower edges of the housing memher.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

PAUL W. FENTON.

